Heretofore, belt tension exercising devices have been intended primarily for use in exercising the arm and chest muscles. In many prior devices, an elastic band is connected to a pair of hand grips which are pressed in opposite directions to stretch the elastic for exercise. These prior devices are severely limited as to the exercises which may be performed and thereby limit the number of muscles of the body which may be exercised. Moreover, previous exercise devices have experienced unduly swift deterioration in the interconnection between the elastic material and the handles. Such deterioration often results in a dangerous condition in which sudden severance of the connection during an exercise can produce an injury.
In contrast, the present invention permits exercising, not only the arm and chest muscles in the conventional way, but the upper and lower back, shoulders, calves, thighs, hips and stomach. The tension in the elastic band is adjustable thereby permitting more advanced exercises as body conditioning improves. Moreover, the points of contact between the elastic and the handle are arranged for minimal wear and tear and thereby reduce the danger of a sudden severance of the elastic.